Reviews by MissRevka:

I can't get enough of a thick chewy stout and quite frankly anytime threatens my pallet I know I'm in for a good time. I purchased the flight of the three main pallet wreckers and went to town trampling my pallet into a stringent submission between the curry, the ginger and the chipotle. Of the three Indra Kunindra was the heavy weight. Not only was it thick and chewy the way I like my stouts it was hotter that the Red thai curry I had not only an hour beforehand. This was my first time at Ballast point and rest assured it will not be the last. Amazing. Why I can't buy a growlerfull is beyond me, it's as though they know I will misuse it somehow? HOW DO THEY KNOW!? How!

More User Reviews:

You get exactly what they promote with this beer -- India spices, curry, and tons of flavor packed into a nice export stout. Don't hate because you aren't as much of a curry fan as you thought. No false advertising here. (220 characters)

S: The lime and coconut are first to get noticed with mention of cayenne and cumin. Fresh coconut, leafy greens, with the curry coming on the trail. Some celery stalk and a faint peppery mention. A nice mixture of asian spices, the chocolate and roasted nature a bit more reserved. Spicy, unique.

T: The asian spices come through strongly on the flavor aspect, no subtle hints here, distinct warming of cayenne and curry add that distinct spiciness and flair. Roasted coconut, cumin, fresh greenery, some coffee with a gentle warming of asian spice finish that provides just that right amount of balance, complexity and gentle warmth to the palate for a wintery night sampling.

M: Mouthful had a spicy cayenne sensation on the inner cheeks, as well the tongue. Body is medium full, some gentle dance of carbonation.

O: Overall I gave consideration for its uniquiness and what they were intending to do rather then shoe horn and punish this by style for a more focused attention on the spices then the roasted and coffee nature. An uniquely spiced export stout that highlights the asian induced spices with a very good balance and represenatation. A definite consideration for a one time sampling to try something outside the box. (1,526 characters)

S: There is a lot going on here. The front is curry and almost gives me a little bit of a taco seasoning thing... odd.. but behind that there is a sweet coconut and chocolate aroma..

T: Man that is weird. Curry up front, with a touch of spiciness, which mellows into dark chocolate, coconut, and roasted grains, followed by a hint of lime. It is certainly interesting, but I don't know if I like it. I enjoy the multitude of different flavors, but am not sure

M: Medium in feel, with fairly active carbonation.

O: Overall this beer is a misfit. It is certainly interesting, and well made, but I am not sure if the flavor profile is up my alley. It is interesting that this multitude of flavors works together in one brew which is impressive, just not sure if I love it. (851 characters)

Enjoyed out of a 22 oz brown bottle with the new branded label--a picture of an octopus holding the various ingredients that contribute to the unique taste of this stout. There is some date information on the bottom of the label, but it seems to have been rubbed off, so I can't tell what vintage this is. Poured into a large glass stein with a textured exterior.

Appearance - Pours a dark chestnut brown color that hints towards almost black. Atop the body sits a healthy one finger head of dense frothy cocoa colored foam. Retention is good, with the head beginning to resemble the moon, with mini craters of pockmarks dotting the surface. Lacing is sparse and slightly sticky.

Smell - Mostly, there are the traditional profiles you'd expect from a stout, with roasty grain and charred toast as well as bittersweet notes of dark chocolate. However, there is a subtle presence from the curry spicing, reminiscent of garam masala with notes of cinnamon, clove and cardamom alongside the cumin and coconut that is added to the beer. I don't get much from the Kaffir lime leaves or cayenne, but I'm intrigued.

Taste - Surprisingly, a lot of the same curry elements come through in the taste, but in a subtle, complementary fashion to the base stout. Roasted malt and light char bitterness are enhanced by the notes of cinnamon, coconut and cumin from the spicing. Cayenne is present, but very faint at first--that said, it provides a cumulative but not at all overpowering heat as I continue to drink the beer. It's not the type of beer that you could just have anytime, but the infusion of traditional Indian spices is very well done here. Quite impressive.

Overall, a very well done beer from Ballast Point. I've had stouts that infused Indian spices before without nearly as much success. This one manages to have a very forward presence from the spicing without it being overpowering or cloying. I would gladly drink this beer again if I was in the right mood. It made me want to go get some tikka masala for dinner. (2,120 characters)

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled on 4/21/2014. Pours fairly pitch black color with a 2 finger fairly dense tan head with decent retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with some moderate streaming carbonation. Aromas of chocolate, cocoa, toast, roasted malt, vanilla, coconut, cumin, cinnamon, clove, peppercorn, cardamom, cayenne, lime, herbal, and toast/herbal earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/roasted malt and the wide variety of spices; with good strength. Taste of chocolate, cocoa, toast, roasted malt, vanilla, coconut, cumin, cinnamon, clove, peppercorn, cardamom, cayenne, lime, herbal, and toast/herbal earthiness. Moderate earthy spices and heat on the finish; with lingering notes of chocolate, cocoa, toast, vanilla, coconut, cumin, cinnamon, clove, peppercorn, cardamom, cayenne, lime, herbal, and toast/herbal earthiness on the finish for a while. Very nice complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt and big spice flavors; with a nice malt/spice balance with no cloying flavors after the finish and a moderate amount of lingering heat. Light-medium carbonation and medium bodied; with a smooth and fairly creamy mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol was well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish other than the heat from the spices. Overall this was a very nice spiced stout. All around good complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt and spice flavors; and quite smooth to sip on despite the moderate heat. A very enjoyable offering. (1,563 characters)

Looks like a dark beer. Yeah, dark brown, like a soft siesta. Head is beige, nice-looking, like a woman. This head is a woman.

Smell is spice-gasmic. Mildly tickles you with roast, then takes you on a cable car, presenting you with anise and clovey vistas. And nothing else.

Taste has a similar note, but a touch of roast, before it forays into spice territory, and what a Leroy Jenkinsian foray! Pepper, even chilli there, plus anise, then finish is dry, with some vanilla pods and odd herbal pepper notes as well. It is a decidedly odd chap, but one I decidedly like.

Foamy, really odd spicy notes on the back. Weird.

You meet this chap on the street. He reads you some new wave beat poetry. It's avant-garde. It's weird. I can't help but like him though. He's definitely his own beer. (791 characters)

This is an experimental beer that deviates entirely from Stout conventions. Serve this in an 19th century London Pub and you'd get shot with a mousegun.

Ballast Point blends traditional South Asian spices with malty and chocolate flavors to build a hybrid has a broad spectrum of flavor and a nice spicy kick at its end.

S: The madras curry and cumin dominate the aroma. After tasting the beer the coconut and malt notes pop a little bolder. Strangely, there's very little here that suggests the kind of polarizing flavors the taste blends together... Really, the Indra puts all of its aesthetic joy into the taste-- which, hey, is where it should be.

T: Unique, experimental blend of a spicy curry and a sweet stout. The curry, kaffir lime and cumin dominate the head of the beer but fade into the sugary coconut and malt. The beer finishes with a cayenne kick that lingers through to the next sip and bundles the flavor across swallows. The spiciness is enough to get your attention but it also washes out the bitterness in the kaffir lime and the cumin, drawing the natural sugar notes out of the fruits and the malt.

I can understand why this brew has such diametric reviews on this site. It's not only eschewing the traditional balance and flavor of a stout, but its also stepping outside of the South Asian palate that we're used to from take-out (or the food carts in Bangkok).

Indra uses the natural lactose from the malt to balance out the spice and citrus instead of the cloves or coriander that's traditional to the South Asian dishes we all know. It's a hybrid taste, albeit on the Asian side of the palate. But the spicy and sweet notes it hits are very vibrant and Ballast Point succeeds in bringing these difficult, often discordant, flavors together into one robust stout. At the end of each sip is the sweetness of the lime, the milkiness of the coconut and the steady burn of the cayenne. Very nice indeed.

O: this beer should be served with food to help balance out its weaknesses-- namely it dominates the entire palate, pushing its range of spices to the extreme. But since it manages to blend together an entire spectrum of flavors, slowing down, sipping and enjoying the Indra is one of the most rewarding culinary experiences I've had this year.

Pairing with South Asian or South-East Asian food is a no-brainer. I wouldn't match it up with any mild food, like scallops in butter sauce, because the cayenne and curry would overwhelm the main dish. I'd really love to try this beer with something equally as sweet and spicy-- like a really good mango chutney or pork chops with an apple-jalapeno sauce. Since the beer intentionally skipped on the cloves, I bet any red meat with a good clove note would mesh up with this beer.

4.5 out of 5.0

PROs: Experimental beer that's put South Asia into a stout-- wide range of disparate flavors held together by a harmony of malt and cayenne. Complex taste and doesn't fade after a few sips. Every swallow has the whole flavor range in it and even though it bulges towards its limits, the spicy bitterness is checked by a subtle, but powerful malt and coconut sweet finish. Very well built and keeps the drinker engaged. Meshes up with South Asian food perfectly.

CONS: Certainly an oddball. Can imagine it tasting engineered. Very potent beer-- it's not going to be ignored or blend into the background; demands your full attention with each sip which can overpower other flavors, especially foods. The extremes of its ingredients can bury some of the more subtle flavors it is striving for, making it feel like a tug of war between spicy and malt, or worse curry and cumin. (3,680 characters)

I don't care if you don't like curry, you have to admit this beer is brilliantly made! horrifically underrated here on BA. this pours a radiant inky black color, unsuspicious, and boasting an inch or so of lacy mocha head. the nose is just insane, like dank takeout indian food. there is all of the elements, curry powder, cumin, which is very strong, kaffir lime leaf, which is almost refreshing amidst all the dark roast, and coconut, to sweeten things up. there is also the cayenne, if you take a really hard sniff, it almost burns the nostrils, true to form. the taste is every bit as good as the nose, like exceptional takeout food. the curry is strong, the cumin is fresh, the chili is just in the finish, and the coconut and lime leaf cut through some of the other heavy flavors. I can only imagine how many times they made this beer wrong or out of proportion before they got it right. it certainly is dialed now, seriously fantastic. the mix of flavors here is like nothing I would have ever expected in a beer. I have to say, a whole bottle would have been too much, and im not sure im in a hurry to find this again, but what a wonderful treat to get to try such a creative and artfully crafted bottle of beer. this is really something special, and it puts the countless spiced beers to shame. you wont believe this beer until you taste it! (1,350 characters)

Initially saw "Limited release... Stout ... Ballast Point" ... Poured a nice dark looking stout ...Read the fine print after the first sip when I caught coconut, hot pepper, and other flavors i have yet to define...Didn't see that coming. (Note to self ..read the label ) The coconut is a touch stronger than the Koko Brown from Kona , the hot pepper has a zip to it. Overall not bad, very interesting, but once may be enough. As with other hot peeper brews, 12 oz is interesting, 22 is a little much. (and I love spicy foods) (527 characters)

22 oz bottle. Pours dark brown with a medium frothy tan head that retains well and laces the glass.

The aroma is huge Indian spice, perfumey curry and lime and coconut. Very interesting.

The flavor is interesting as well - lots of curry powder, sweet lime and a little coconut and then a lot of heat from the spice (cayenne). The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with smooth carbonation.

Overall, a very unique and interesting beer. It actually works for me. (467 characters)